What Could Have Happened?
by Jen Lewis
Summary: A Triss and Wren story in poetic form. Revised and Complete
1. Assassination attempt

Disclaimers:The characters and the setting do not belong to me, they belong to the brilliant Terry Brooks. This story takes place after The Heritage of Shannara Book III: The Elfqueen of Shannara. Please remember to review!

**What could have happened?**

Child of Shannara

Queen of the elves

Wren Elessedil

To a few, Wren Ohmsford

She doesn't know who she is anymore

She sat under the Ellcrys

The wonderful trees 

Which sat in the garden of life

Clutching the ruhk staff

Staring at the Loden 

Little did she know

That someone was watching her

Waiting for what felt like an eternity

"My Lady?" he asked

Causing Wren to jump

Wren looked towards the castle

There stood Triss

The Captain of the Home Guard

Worry set in his face

Concern evident in his eyes

Triss walked toward Wren

Uncertain of himself

"Sit down" Wren said

Patting the spot next to her

Smiling at him in joy

He sat down

Looking around as he did so

They sat in silence

Staring at each other

Wondering what they should say

Triss was about to speak

When he heard a noise

Like a rifle being shot

He quickly shielded Wren with his body

Just barely missing the bullet

Whoever it was 

Left in a hurry

Leaving Wren and Triss together

Trying to gather their wits 

Wren wedged between the Ellcrys and Triss

"Triss?" Wren asked

Silence 

"Triss?!" Wren cried

"It's alright, I'm still here,"

Came the answer

She turned then

Grabbing Triss and holding him close

Triss sat in shock

Before he wrapped his arms around Wren

Holding her close while soothing her

Day turned to night

As they sat under the Ellcrys

Thinking about what might 

Have happened to them

Had they lost the other.


	2. Weeks after

**Chapter 2**

Stumbling through the halls

Triss rounded a corner

Surprise engulfing his pale face

As he nearly bumped into Wren

It had been two weeks

Two weeks since the attempt one her life

Two weeks since he realized

He has strong feelings for Wren

Triss had spent all of that time thinking

About how his heart sped up around her

How he thought of her constantly

Both in her presence and alone

Triss' face flushed

"Milady, how are you?"

For once, she seemed shy

"I am fine Triss"

Wren looked carefully into Triss' eyes

"Have you heard of the meeting?"

Triss nodded

"I was coming to escort you to it"


	3. Stress

**Chapter 3**

Quiet engulfed the Counsel chamber

Worried looks abounded

Very few words were exchanged

As the meeting ended

The assassin hadn't been captured

But a note had been found

Someone was still after Wren

Someone thought to be dead

On the outside,

Wren looked calm

On the inside,

She was terrified

He was going to come after her to

Not just to kill her

But to get revenge

For trying to kill him

'He deserved to die'

Wren thought desperately

As she walked through the halls

Carefully listening for any sounds

She continued swiftly through the halls

Thinking about her fate

Until she had reached

A small, relatively unknown balcony

Wren stood there quietly

As her thoughts stretched before her

Overwhelmed, she collapsed suddenly

But never hitting the ground


	4. Wishful thinking

**Chapter 4**

Triss looked worriedly

At his queen

Sleeping fitfully

In her bed

He was so glad

That he had found her

So glad

To be there for her

He had watched her

As she walked through the halls

Her thoughts so deep

That he could walk behind her undetected

Triss was getting really worried

With all of Wren's training

She should have known that he was there

And yet she could not hear him

When Wren collapsed

He feared she had been attacked

When he discovered she hadn't been

He almost cried in joy

Shaking himself from these thoughts

Triss looked at Wren

Staring at her gentle, but strong hand

Wondering what it would be like to hold it


	5. Tears

**Chapter 5**

Wren slept restlessly

Dreaming of horrors

From her youth

As she was becoming queen

She dreamed on

Of one person in particular

The one coming after her

Tib Arne

He had tried to do

Unspeakable things to her

Things that she would never tell Triss

For fear of his reaction

She had tried many times

But each time she felt ready

Triss would look deep into her eyes

And she could not continue

For her mind filled with shame

She could not tell such things

In front of him

For fear of hurting him

Thinking about it

Almost made her cry

Before she knew it

Tears were falling

Wren slowly opened her eyes

When she felt her tears

Being carefully wiped away

By a gentle hand


	6. Surprise

**Chapter 6**

Triss couldn't believe his actions

As he dried Wren's tears

Not only because he was actually doing it

But because she was letting him

Triss moved his hand away

But Wren caught it deftly

As his hand neared hers

The one Triss had longed to hold

His eyes widened slightly

As Wren moved their hands

Toward her face again

To turn her cheek into his hand

Before Triss could do anything

He heard a noise from the window

Like the shoes of a human

"Excellent! Now I can torture her even more!"

Tib Arne jumped into the room

Holding a strange weapon

It looked like a staff

Yet it was made of metal

"I have waited a long time for this,

Wren Elessidil"

Said Arne as he raised his weapon to his shoulder

"You will get what you deserve for denying me"


	7. Worry

**Chapter 7**

It took all of Wren's strength

To keep her head up

To be the steadfast queen that she was known to be

In spite of her increasingly heavy heart

It had been three days

Since Wren had seen Triss

Tib Arne had been right

He inflicted more torture than he could have before

Walker had told Wren

That Arne's weapon was ancient

From a time before magic

Triss would only heal under expert care

Arne, the demon, had been too quick

He had already fired it

Before the elven hunters

Could take him down

He had received no burial

He was to have his carcass

Spread out in the wilderness

For animals to prey upon

Triss had been wounded

The "bullet" as Walker called it

Had barely missed his heart

Thankfully going into a rib

Triss had barely been able

To stay conscious

As Wren held him in her arms

Trying desperately to stop the bleeding

Wren hadn't been allowed

To go visit Triss

As he went to go be cared for

By Laurel, the Minister of Healing

'Laurel' thought Wren

'The only person able to help Triss

That I can completely trust

But why won't she let me help?'

Wren walked silently down the halls

To where she had been so many times

In hopes of seeing Triss

If the healers would only let her


	8. Finally

**Chapter 8**

Triss jerked as he woke up

Looking down at his nearly bare chest

He saw white bandages around it

Pristine and without any signs of blood

He looked about the room

Expecting, no, hoping

To see a trace of his beloved queen

The one that worried so much about him

"How long have you been awake?"

A healer asked from the doorway

"Not very long" Triss replied

As the healer moved towards the nightstand

"Good" said a voice in the hallway

Triss' head turned towards the doorway

There, Wren was framed wearing a white dress

"I was getting tired of waiting"

Triss could tell that her wait

Had not been as calm as it seemed

He could tell that she had been crying

It just surprised him that he caused it

"I am sorry Milady"

Wren looked slightly anxious

Turning to the healer at her side

She asked if she could have some time alone with Triss

Triss looked away from the door

As he heard Wren move closer

He turned his attention back to her

When she sat on his bed

Triss watched Wren

As she moved her fingers

Carefully over his bandages

Checking them with a strange look on her face

When Triss realized what it meant

He slowly pulled her down into a hug

As she poorly tried

To disguise her weeping


	9. Revelations

**Chapter 9**

Wren could not remember the last time

She felt this safe and comforted

As she slowly relaxed

Into Triss' almost loving embrace

Her tears had not subsided

Nor would they

For even though Triss was safe

She had another reason to cry

She had spent the morning hours

Thinking of her darkened past

She knew that now

It was time to tell Triss about Arne

Without thinking more on the matter

Wren disclosed what had happened

Between her and Tib Arne

Many years ago

She feared that she would be unable

To finish her tale

But each time that happened

Triss would stroke her hair, urging her to continue

At last

Wren came to the end

When she had been picked up

By Spirit and Tiger Ty

Wren kept her head down

She knew that she could tell Triss anything

But she wasn't so sure

About how this would affect them

She reluctantly let Triss lift up her head

Knowing that he would not let her continue in despair

It was one of the things she loved about him

'Yes…I do love him'


	10. Finale

**Chapter 10**

Triss could not bear

To see Wren in such pain

It was too bad that Arne was already disposed of

He would have been wonderful for target practice

With this in mind

Triss had lifted up his lady's head

To once again

Wipe the tears off her face

The two of them looked at each other

Eyes never leaving the others

As Wren's tears slowly stopped

And Triss' hand rested on her cheek

Even though neither said a word

They understood

Both could see the love in the other's eyes

That they could not see before

Slowly, they moved closer

Before their lips touched

Each muttering "I love you"

As they parted

The End

Thank you so much for putting up with my writer's block. I hope that you all enjoyed it. I know that I did when I wasn't frustrated.


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